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VEHICLE: M24 Chaffee
. - - . . . . . '~ M24A9 ''Chaffee Light Support Tanks ~' ---- . The Light Tank M24 is an American light tank used during the latter part of World War II and in postwar conflicts including the Korean War and, with the French, in the War in Algeria and the First Indochina War. In British service it was given the service name Chaffee, after the United States Army General Adna R. Chaffee, Jr., who helped develop the use of tanks in the United States armed forces. While long removed from American and British service, it is still found in service as a light tank in third-world countries, along with other hardware from that era. Crews liked the improved off-road performance and reliability, but were most appreciative of the 75 mm main gun, which was a vast improvement over the 37mm. The M24 was not up to the challenge of fighting German tanks, but the bigger gun at least gave its crews a much better chance to fight back when it was required. The M24's light armor made it vulnerable to virtually all German tanks, anti-tank guns, and hand-held anti-tank weapons. The contribution of the M24 to winning the war in Europe was insignificant, as too few arrived too late to replace the worn-out M5s of the armored divisions. In the Korean War, M24s were the initial US tanks directed to combat the North Korean T-34-85s. The occupation troops in Japan from which the tanks were drawn were inexperienced and under-equipped due to rapid demobilization after World War II. The M24 fared poorly against these better armed, better armored, and better crewed medium tanks, losing most of their number while inflicting only minor damage on the T-34 units. Managing a fighting withdrawal, they ended up as artillery in the Pusan Perimeter; in August reinforcements from the US and the Commonwealth brought heavier tanks that could easily dispatch the T-34s. M24s were more successful later in the war in their reconnaissance role, supported by heavier, more capable tanks such as the M4 ''Sherman, M26 Pershing, and M46 Patton. Like other successful World War II designs, the M24 was supplied to many armies around the globe and was used in local conflicts long after it had been replaced in the US Army by the M41 Walker Bulldog. France employed its M24s in Indo-China in infantry support missions, with good results. They employed ten M24s in the Battle of Dien Bien Phu. In December 1953, ten disassembled Chaffees were transported by air to provide fire support to the garrison. They fired about 15,000 shells in the long siege that followed before the Viet Minh forces finally overcame the camp in May 1954. France also deployed the M24 in Algeria. Some Chaffees are known to have been passed down to the Army of South Vietnam, where they saw service at least until the Battle of Huế. The last time the M24 is known to have been in action was in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971, where 66 Pakistani Chaffees stationed in East Pakistan were lost to Indian Army T-55s, PT-76s, and anti-tank teams. Although both Iran and Iraq had M24s prior to the Iran–Iraq War, there is no report of their use in that conflict. South Korean Chaffees saw service in the Korean War, often performing hit-and-run raids on communist forces. . . . ---- 'Specifications:' . -- . . . ---- 'Gallery:' . - Chafee.jpg M24-chaffee- (7).jpg M8 greyhound and m24 chaffee (3).jpg|M8 Greyhound and M24 Chaffee m24-chaffee- (2).jpg m24-chaffee- (5).jpg m24-chaffee- (6).jpg m24-chaffee- (8).jpg m24-chaffee- (9).jpg m24-chaffee- (10).jpg m24-chaffee- (11).jpg m24-chaffee- (12).jpg m24-chaffee-(14).jpg - . . . ---- 'Notes:' . . . . . ---- . . . . . Category:ARMY Category:Armored Vehicles Category:National Militia Category:Hereford Company